Knitting machine



Sept. 8, 1931. H, GPFERT 1,822,024

KNITTING MACHINE Filed Nov. 1. 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet l Sept. 8, 1931. H, GPFERT 1,822,024

KNITTING MACHINE Filed NOV. l. 1928 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 patented Sept. 8,

UNITED STATES HEINRICH Grrna'r, or AroLDA, GERMANY XNITTING MACHINE Application led November 1, 1928,'Serial No.316,388, and in Germany November 2, 1927.

This invention relates to a process and machine or apparatus for producing -selvedge edges in ithe manufacture of said fabrics.

It is an object of my invention to provide a process, and to design a machine', for making a combined fabric of the kind described, that is, a fabric in which the features of warp knitted fabricsand of weft knitted fabrics are combined.

lo To this end I so perform my process and so design my machine that its needles may beI alternately moved`individually, that is, in-

dependently of the needle bed, and in unison, that is in fixed relation to the needle bed.

In this manner, I may form the beginning edge of the fabric by weft knitting, and the body of the fabricby warp knitting.

' In a preferred embodimentof the machine for performing my process, I provide needle J beds which may be alternately placed in parallel for warp knitting, and inclined at anangle for weft knitting.

In the drawings aflixed to this specification and forming part thereof, a machine in which 5;; my process may be performed is illustrated diagrammatically by way of example.

-' In the drawings-4 Fig. 1 -is a side view of the machine, showing the needle'bed plates in the parallel po- 3 sition suitable for warp knitting.

Fig. 2 is a side view` showingthe needle bed plates swung out into angular position suitable for common hosiery knitting.

3 is 'an elevation of the lock at the right-hand side of the machine, drawnto a larger scale and Viewed-in the direction of arrow III, Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 illustrates a needle. The machine is equipped with a pair of needle bed plates 1, 1 in which the needles 2 with their butts 13 are mounted to slide in the usual tricks. 3, 3 are pivots about which the needle beds 1, 1 are mounted to rock at their upper ends. At its lower end, each needle bed is equipped with a pin 4 adapted to be engaged by a slot 5 in an arm 6. The arms are mount -ed on shafts 8, 8 which extend in parallel on vopposite sides of the machine, and 7, 7 are wheels on the shafts 8 which areV slotted at their perimeters for the insertion of handspikes 77. yAllotted to each needle Ibed lis a channel bar 18 at the free end of an arm 66, the arms being rocked by any suit-able means so as to alternately engage and release tho butts 13. In the substantially parallel position of the needle beds 1, Fig. 1, the

'channel bars 18 engage the butts 13 and hold the needles against movement. 9 is a beam arranged above the pivots 3 ofthe needle beds 1, and 10 are guide bars secured to the beam. The upper ends of the needles 2 are fitted with the usual heads 11 and latches 12, as

best seen in Fig. 4, and are controlled byA ing 22; 17 is an arm which is mounted* to rock inthe bearing 22 at its outer end, and 15 is a thread guide at the inner end of the arm 17.

When the needle beds 1, 1 are in the position illustrated in-Fig. 1, the machine is operated as a warp-knitting machine and the needles are engaged by the channel bars 18 at their butts 13 and fixed with respect to their beds. In the position illustrated in Fig. 3 the machine is operated as a weft-knitting machine, the channel bars 18 releasing the butts 13, and the locks 14 engaging them instead.

The method of operation of the device is as follows:

In the case of warp knitting, the needle bed plates are caused to assume t-he position shown in Fig. 1 in which they are parallel. The bars 18 move into active positions so as to fix the needles with respect to their bed plates. The bar 19 is moved so vas to place the thread guide 15 into inactive position. The needle hooks 11 are turned away from each. In this case the machine works in the well known way as a .warp knitting machine. In order to operate the machine as a knitting machine, the bars 18 are retracted, the

' locks 14 are placed on the beds 1, 1, the thread guide l5 is moved into4 active position as shown 'm F1 g. 2, the levers 7 are swung around on the pins 8' intb the horizontal .position channel bars adapted to engage the butts of illustrated in Fig. 2, causing the beds to be the needles in said machine.

swung into the angular` position also illustrated in Fig. 2. In this; motion, the needle ends cross so that the openings in the needle hooks face each other; the thread guide 15 is now intermediate the ends of the needles, the guide bars l0 have been swung out and are held in this position, and the machine is now ready for operation as a weft or framework knitting machine.

In order to reverse again from this position into the position for warp knitting, it is only necessary to swing the levers 7 backwards and to bring the needles again into the position shown in Fig. l.

In performing my process, I first knit normal warp knitted fabric, then I knit a belt of weft knitted fabric, and then I continue as normal warp knitted fabric. It will be understood that the warp threads of warp knitted fabric normally extend freely across the belt of weft knitted fabric, as the looping ope-ration is suspended for the width of the belt of weft knitted fabric. The free warp threads are undesirable as when the warp knitted fabrics are separated by cutting through the weft knitted belt, the warp threads areexposed and give the edges of the pieces an unsightly hairy appearance. If, in order to eliminate this, the warp threads are cut at a short dista-nce from the course at the edge the loops of this course have a tendency to run. i

This is avoided according to my invention by combining the warp and weft knitting operations for one or two courses near the edge, or the two edges, ofthe weft-knitted belt. To this end the machine is operated as a warp knitting machine before the last course or courses 0f the belt of weft knitted fabric have been completed, so that the warp threads are worked into this course, or these courses. The warp threads are interlocked with the loops of the weft knitted belt and the projecting ends of the warp threads may now be cut in close vicinity to the edge of the fabric as on account of the interweaving or interlocking of the loops in the last course, or in the last courses near the edge, there is no longer any tendency to running.

I wish it to be understood that I do not desire ta be limited to the exact details of construction shown and described for `obvious modificationsy will occur to a person skilled in the art.

A machine for the production of selvedges in warp knitted fabrics which is adapted to be changed into a machine for weft knitting, comprising a thread guide for operation in connection with thef knitting of weft knit hoslery, means for placing said thread guide in a position corresponding to the respective operations ofA the machine, and movable In testimony whereof I affix my signature.

HEINRICH GPFERT. 

